SHOW REVIEW: ASAP Rocky

I've been to a lot of hip hop shows in my days and I can honestly say I never know what to expect from the performer. There have been times where I have gone to a show and it has made me like the artist more, and at times it's completely turned me off. On February 9th, RVA and myself got the opportunity to see one of, if not the, hottest hip-hop artists in the game, Harlem rapper A$AP Rocky. In his short-lived career he has taken the industry by storm with his debut mixtape, Live.Love.A$AP, which led him to signing a $3 million dollar record deal with Sony/RCA earlier this year. He took the stage at The National with that same energy, turning the crowd from a bunch of hip hop heads in to trill motherfuckers.

Arriving onstage, ASAP greeted an antsy crowd who had just witnessed an opening act, Joe Threat, that no one was pleased with. I knew that this was not going to be any ordinary hip-hop show, as mosh pits were forming just feet away from me. I found myself getting closer to the action as time went on. Fans began to stage dive left and right, and with the show turning into an elephant on skates, it was better than anything I ever expected. Hit after hit--A$AP kept bringing the heat. I didn't want to stop cooking, or singing along to the songs I've been blasting through my speakers since the release of his mixtape.

Before I knew it, things began to come to an end. I was tired from bouncing around all night. A$AP Rocky laid down his hit that got our attention this past summer, “Peso,” as his encore. But to my surprise, and I am sure everyone else’s as well, things didn’t end after his encore. He and his A$AP crew members jumped out to the crowd to keep the party rolling, as his DJ spun old Cash Money records and kept us hype for another fifteen minutes. By the end of it all, I got lit, I got piss drunk, and A$AP Rocky did not disappoint me, as he put on a show that I will never forget.

Words by Henry Soza
Images by Tuji Angba
Video by @Premium_Blendz of DopeMinds.com